Lucas rescues PSG as 10-man Monaco edge Montpellier

PARIS: Lucas Moura grabbed a controversial late winner as Paris St Germain beat Lille 2-1 to stay three points behind Monaco after the Ligue 1 leaders secured a gritty 2-1 victory at Montpellier.

Edinson Cavani netted his league-leading 23rd goal of the season to put the reigning champions ahead on 70 minutes at the Parc des Princes.

A dreadful mistake from Alphonse Areola allowed Nicolas de Preville to level with four minutes left but Lucas claimed a crucial three points for PSG in stoppage time despite being in an offside position.

“We never gave up despite conceding a goal just a few minutes from the end. We kept going and were able to get the winner,” Lucas said.

Lille boss Patrick Collot admitted to feeling “huge frustration” and called for video technology to help out referees in such situations.

“That’s the vagaries of football and it will be until there is video to help the referees,” said Collot.

After scoring twice in the final 10 minutes of Saturday’s 3-1 defeat of Dijon, Unai Emery’s side again left it late to keep themselves within touching distance of Monaco.

Areola made a sharp low save to keep out Franck Beria’s first-half header, while PSG struggled to convert their dominance into a lead as Vincent Enyeama stuck out a strong right hand to thwart Angel Di Maria on the hour.

But Cavani eventually broke the deadlock when he steered a looping free-kick into the far corner via a combination of head and shoulder.

Lille looked to have snatched a point when Areola lost control of a backpass under pressure from Eric Bautheac, with fellow substitute De Preville gleefully slotting home the equaliser.

However, Lucas forced the ball in from close range in the second minute of added-on time after Cavani’s initial shot was charged down amid a desperate scramble in the Lille box.

Earlier, Poland international Kamil Glik’s brave header gave Monaco a 16th-minute lead in Montpellier before 18-year-old Kylian Mbappe struck on the counter-attack to double their advantage five minutes later.

Veteran Brazilian centreback Vitorino Hilton pulled a goal back early in the second half but Monaco withstood a late onslaught despite the dismissal of Jemerson for a second booking.

“I congratulated the players, it’s good to be able to weather the storm and keep a lead intact,” said Monaco coach Leonardo Jardim.

“You never win every game in football and that was the time to defend the lead, to show that attitude.

“It’s important for a team to have this mentality, lots of matches are lost in the last 10 minutes.” — AFP